Sri Lanka fought back on the third morning of the first Test in Rawalpindi, reaching 221 for four at lunch on Wednesday with former captain Dhananjaya de Silva unbeaten on 87.
Resuming on 114 for three, the tourists lost just one wicket in the morning session and cut Pakistan's first-innings lead to 213 runs. De Silva, who was dropped on 38 by Saud Shakeel at first slip, made the most of the reprieve, hitting nine fours in 121 balls, while captain Kusal Mendis was unbeaten on 21 at the interval.
The fightback was built on a 90-run fourth-wicket stand between de Silva and Kamindu Mendis, who made 58 from 131 balls with eight fours before edging Mohammad Abbas to wicketkeeper Ghazi Ghori. It was Kamindu's eighth Test half-century, and his dismissal at 155 for four was Pakistan's only success of the session.
De Silva then added an unbroken 66 with Kusal Mendis, who took over the captaincy from him in October, as Sri Lanka moved past 200 and within sight of avoiding the follow-on. The Associated Press, Geo News and ESPNcricinfo all reported the lunch score, with the AP noting that Pakistan's inexperienced bowling attack struggled to penetrate with the old, softer ball on a greenish pitch.
Pakistan had declared their first innings at 434 for nine midway through the second session on Tuesday, after five batters — including three debutants — registered half-centuries. Saud Shakeel led the scoring with 93 from 199 deliveries, and Asitha Fernando took three for 107 for Sri Lanka.
The home side's bowling has been led by the veteran Abbas, who has two for 33, while debutant quick Saqib Khan has two for 82, including his maiden Test wicket when he removed Dinesh Chandimal on the second day. The inexperience of the attack has shown, though, and the dropped catch off de Silva proved costly as the morning wore on.
The match is the first of a two-Test series, and both matches will now be played at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. The second Test, originally scheduled for Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore from 17 to 21 November, was moved to Rawalpindi because of the severe smog blanketing the Punjab capital.
For Sri Lanka, the morning session was a significant recovery from a difficult start to their reply. They had been reduced to 65 for three early on the second evening before Kamindu and de Silva began the repair work, and bad light brought an early close to play on the second successive day with the tourists on 114 for three.
Pakistan will still feel they hold the advantage. A lead of 213 runs with six wickets in hand gives them a strong position, and the pitch is expected to offer more to the bowlers as the match wears on. But de Silva's innings has kept the game alive, and if he goes on to a century after lunch, Sri Lanka could yet save the match.
With two sessions remaining on the third day and rain forecast for the days ahead, the draw remains a realistic outcome, but the contest has at least been given fresh life by a morning in which Sri Lanka's middle order refused to fold.
Play resumes after lunch with de Silva on 87 and Kusal Mendis on 21, and Pakistan searching for the breakthrough that would open up the lower order and put them in a position to enforce a substantial first-innings lead.
